Utah city ordered to provide water records for enormous NSA facility

For years now, reliable information about a massive new National Security Agency data center in Bluffdale, Utah has been hard to come by. The data center is believed to be the central node for the storage and analysis of the NSA's data collection programs, storing exabytes (1 exabyte = 1 billion gigabytes) of data.

In October 2013, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Utah Data Center had experienced “10 [electrical] meltdowns in the past 13 months.” The paper added that the Utah site continuously draws 65 megawatts of power, “which could power a small city of at least 20,000.” Bluffdale itself is a small city of 8,000 people, just south of Salt Lake City—it is also the headquarters of the Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist group.

Neither the NSA nor Bluffdale City Attorney Vaughn Pickell immediately responded to Ars’ request for comment, nor did they answer questions about whether the NSA or the city will appeal the ruling.

Susan Mumford, of the State Records Committee, told Ars that the city has 30 days to comply or appeal.

“They can appeal to district court,” she said. “There is no indication either way at this point. It is common with governmental agencies to wait [this long].”

Ipso facto

Back in May 2013, the Tribune reporter, Nate Carlisle, went up against Bluffdale's city council in an attempt to learn more about the data center by filing a public records request under the state’s Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA).

Further Reading

"Nullify NSA" wants to use state law to stop spooks. Lawyers say, "not so fast."

Carlisle, who did not immediately respond to Ars’ request for comment, asked for “all e-mails to or from the nsa.gov domain” and “any information provided to the National Security Agency to encourage it to build a data center in Utah.” That request was fulfilled by November 2013, but it contained redactions of “Projected Water Demands.”

Carlisle then filed a second request in December 2013, asking for a “complete copy of the agreement for Bluffdale to provide water to the National Security Agency and/or the Utah Data Center,” as well as “records of water daily usage at the Utah Data Center from inception to date.”

Originally, the water records request was denied by the city, which cited legal advice from David Sherman, the associate director for policy and records at the NSA.

“By computing the water usage rate, one could ultimately determine the computing power and capabilities of the Utah Data Center,” Sherman wrote. “Armed with this information, one could then deduce how much intelligence NSA is collecting and maintaining, and this clearly relates to one of NSA's core missions, which is the collection of foreign intelligence. Likewise, NSA's water usage rate at this data center clearly relates to NSA activities in carrying out its foreign intelligence mission.”

The city did ultimately agree to provide the Bluffdale-NSA water agreement for a fee of $767.45, but it declined to include the water records.

Utah is an “arid state”

In mid-January 2014, Carlisle appealed that decision, arguing that the city should be compelled to include the water data and to lower the fee amount.

In its March 28 order, the State Records Committee found in Carlisle’s favor, saying that the fee should be reduced to $334.95 and that once it was paid, the city of Bluffdale must provide the water records.

Among its reasons, the committee noted that the GRAMA specifically states that "all records are public unless otherwise expressly prohibited by statute.” The committee agreed with Carlisle’s argument that the city could not use another state law to shield access to the information, as it was Bluffdale that had generated the water usage data.

The committee concluded:

There is no precedent for denying access to water usage reports and records, but rather there is a public interest, at least in an arid state like Utah, to be made aware of the amount of water used and sold by a government entity, and there is no jeopardy to any public policy, including divulging information about the activities of the Utah Data Center.

If the city does not comply, Bluffdale will be fined $500 per day and may be recommended to state judicial agencies for further remedy.

UPDATE 4:38pm CT: Nate Carlisle contacted Ars to say that he was going to wait to hear if Bluffdale will appeal before he makes his payment. He also said he isn't sure whether the site is operational or not.

"I asked the NSA that over the weekend, and have not gotten a response," he said.

Just to through a conspiracy theory out there, the pic made me think of it. Maybe it's actually a fake data center and they are using the power for something else? If they release the water records, people will find out they aren't using as nearly as much water as would be expected.

it is also the headquarters of the Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist group.

A fact that has what relevance to the story?

Bluffdale is also home to a guy named Earl who, although failing the test to get a drivers license several times, occasionally drives an old Chevy to the 7-11 to get a Big Gulp. More on this story as it develops.

Can they do this to other customers of municipal utilities beside NSA?

It seems like a double edged swords to me. I am for the expansion of municipal fiber access, but I am not hot on such access being subject to public record mandates.

Water usage records being public is an exception because they are in an exceptional case of having a limited vital natural resource, water. In order for the public to make informed decisions about some so important, they must have information.

I'm not quite sure how fiber got mixed in here, other than it is also a municipal service they're also trying to roll out.

it is also the headquarters of the Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist group.

A fact that has what relevance to the story?

Since the entire story is conspiracy-bait, why not spice it up with a dash of religious mysticism? Hell, I wouldn't mind seeing some references here to Area 51 and maybe even a nod to los pantalones del magico.

Seriously, what the hell difference does some local color make to an already frivolous story?

Wouldn't someone need to know the recirculation versus one-pass cooling to deduce anything about the computing power? And wouldn't it be ecologically 'criminal' to perform only one-pass cooling?

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Wouldn't someone need to know the recirculation versus one-pass cooling to deduce anything about the computing power? And wouldn't it be ecologically 'criminal' to perform only one-pass cooling?

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Wouldn't someone need to know the recirculation versus one-pass cooling to deduce anything about the computing power? And wouldn't it be ecologically 'criminal' to perform only one-pass cooling?

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Wouldn't someone need to know the recirculation versus one-pass cooling to deduce anything about the computing power? And wouldn't it be ecologically 'criminal' to perform only one-pass cooling?

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Water cooling with air. Think radiators.[/quote]

Umm... Utah... air cooling... nope.[/quote]

Half of Utah is desert. Bluffdale specifically seems to have less than 2" of average monthly precipitation. Perfect for evaporative cooling.

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Water cooling with air. Think radiators.

Umm... Utah... air cooling... nope.[/quote]

Half of Utah is desert. Bluffdale specifically seems to have less than 2" of average monthly precipitation. Perfect for evaporative cooling.

1) The polygamous group reference is pretty damn bigoted. Mormons have nothing to do with polygamists. Haven't since the nineteenth century. In case you missed it, we're now living in the 21st Century. Get with it!

2) Other than that idiotic reference, thanks for the excellent information. It's good to have. The federal government is less transparent now than it ever has been, and is orders of magnitude more powerful (and tyrannical) than it was the last time 'journalists' actually seemed to give a damn about transparency in government. We need, now more than ever, for all information sources which profess to be informative, rather than entertainment, to question our government when it violates our Constitutional rights, so thank you for doing the right thing, and not being evil (unlike Google, these days)!

3) Any huge federal government use of water in a desert state like Utah is as idiotic as it is tyrannical, and arguably, criminal. The NSA facility ought to be sold off to private individuals (think stock) and businesses in the surrounding area. If it's going to use their water, it ought to benefit those willing to part with some cash to own a piece of a world-class data center of gargantuan proportions.

4) Utah is very dry, so evaporative cooling works great.

5) Since we're talking about our incredibly corrupt federal government, the most relevant information about Bluffdale, Utah is the massive state prison located there, not some puny groups of polygamists which have nothing to do with Mormons.

It would be proper to correct this, since you saw fit (as others have mentioned) to mention an irrelevancy incorrectly.

Despite the AP Stylebook's claim, it is appropriate to refer to the group as Mormon Fundamentalists. They are self identified as such, and their beliefs are pretty closely allied with the way the term Fundamentalist is applied across other religions. It is just the 'non-fundamentalist' Mormons objection to including them as mormon, that the AP stylebook is based on. It's akin to any Christian group objecting to another religious group using the term Christian.

Wouldn't someone need to know the recirculation versus one-pass cooling to deduce anything about the computing power? And wouldn't it be ecologically 'criminal' to perform only one-pass cooling?

Only if there is a way to cool the water. If the water comes in cool and they use it to cool the center, there may be no way to cool it again to reuse it. A lot of plants actually expel warm water back into rivers as a waste product. It can have a lot of unwanted side affects.

Water cooling with air. Think radiators.

Umm... Utah... air cooling... nope.

Actually, very likely. In low humidity environments evaporative coolers are often used as air conditioning. When I was stationed in Abilene, TX. our dorms were cooled this way and you had to wear a sweater in the summer inside.

It would be proper to correct this, since you saw fit (as others have mentioned) to mention an irrelevancy incorrectly.

Despite the AP Stylebook's claim, it is appropriate to refer to the group as Mormon Fundamentalists. They are self identified as such, and their beliefs are pretty closely allied with the way the term Fundamentalist is applied across other religions. It is just the 'non-fundamentalist' Mormons objection to including them as mormon, that the AP stylebook is based on. It's akin to any Christian group objecting to another religious group using the term Christian.

The AP stylebook is correct. The only reason one would make such a reference is either

It's pretty offensive to group Mormons with polygamists, just like it's pretty offensive to pretend that all Muslims are terrorists. And while we're on the topic of bigotry, it's likewise pretty offensive to use racial slurs. So unless you're also justifying the use of racial slurs, or substituting the term 'Muslim' for 'Terrorist,' your logic is deeply flawed.

It's pretty offensive to group Mormons with polygamists, just like it's pretty offensive to pretend that all Muslims are terrorists. And while we're on the topic of bigotry, it's likewise pretty offensive to use racial slurs. So unless you're also justifying the use of racial slurs, or substituting the term 'Muslim' for 'Terrorist,' your logic is deeply flawed.

The reason I cite is neither. I wasn't stating that Mormons, but rather Mormon Fundamentalism includes groups that are polygamous. I would never refer to Mormonism as being polygamous (though at one time it was). Again to be clear I am not talking about the modern Mormon Church, nor am I attempting to obscure or mislead anyone to thinking the modern Mormon Church condones polygamy in any way. But it's undeniable that polygamy was historically a practice of the church, and that groups currently practicing polygamy under the auspices of the historical practice are adhering to a religious fundamentalism (an aspect of a church practice eschewed by modern religious or less traditionalist practitioners). Fundamentalism doesn't mean espousing a more 'accurate' or 'better' form of the religion, it simply means more traditional, relative to another group that has changed.

When John Q. Public filed an FOIA request for the information, his request was denied by the agency on the grounds that "revealing what planet the facility is on would expose the galaxy and solar system it is in. Knowing that, bad people could extrapolate the scope of facility resources by its astrogeographical staging on the unnamed planet's crust."

This is an easy problem to solve, increase the budget of the NSA facility and they can install water reuse technology. Town saves water, NSA water usage goes down; everyone wins.

Honestly, Why wouldn't this be part of the design anyway? If the data center heats up the water that much, they could pump it back to the town for district heating.

If the data centre is in the desert, it gets reasonably cool out at night when the sun is down, you could have a system that takes the days used water and run it through cooling radiators on the roof of the building or something similar.

it is also the headquarters of the Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist group.

A fact that has what relevance to the story?

None! I bet there's a convicted criminal living in the city too. And there's probably a sex offender. There might even be a Democrat! You didn't list any of them, though, Cyrus.

I am so sick of article writers looking up the nearest crackpot group whenever they refer to Utah. I've lived in Utah my entire life, and I've NEVER run into any of the groups that keep popping up in national news stories. In fact, I live 15 minutes away from the area in THIS article, and I've never even heard of this group before.

When you put that together with the fact that it's completely irrelevant to the story, you get...anger. From me at least.

Seriously, Ars ought to be better than this. Stop making fun of my state, Cyrus.

Actually, very likely. In low humidity environments evaporative coolers are often used as air conditioning. When I was stationed in Abilene, TX. our dorms were cooled this way and you had to wear a sweater in the summer inside.

If they used one-pass evaporative cooling, their water usage could be in the 500,000 to 600,000 gallon per day range. I may have made a mistake with my calculations, and there are some unknowns that must be replaced with assumptions, but...

65 megawatts consumption is 65,000,000 joules/second. Assume an input water temperature of 20 deg C (I have no idea what their input water temperature is, so I went with a number a little below room temperature). Water requires 4.19 joules/gram to increase the temperature one degree C, or 335.2 joules/gram to raise the temperature 80 deg C to water's 100 C boiling point, and another 2290 joules/gram to vaporize, for a total of 2,625.2 J/g to vaporize. Divide 65m J/s by 2,625.2 J/g for 24,760 grams/second of water being vaporized. At 1000 grams per liter, and 0.264172 liters per gallon, we get 6.541 gallons/second, or 565,134 gallons per day.

Granted, not all 65 MW are being converted into heat, and not all of the heat produced is being cooled by water (parking lot lights, etc), but it gives an order of magnitude number.

When an agency has demonstrated little regard for anyone else and has no accountability, why should they care if they pass costs onto others? That water was free to whoever got it first.

A significantly growing problem in the world is externalizing costs (think polluting industries, or those that outsource troublesome operations to countries with lax laws, etc.), and this is a prime example.